


Hybrid Academy- the beginnings

by CeriseHood5050



Series: Hybrid Academy [1]
Category: Rainbow Magic Series - Daisy Meadows, Sarah Jane Adventures, Six - Marlow/Moss
Genre: AU, Adventure, Alternate Universe, Boarding School, Crossover, F/F, Fairies, Fairyland, Magic, Romance, UK Tour, alien planets, discovering who you are
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-26
Updated: 2021-01-14
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:47:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 14,813
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25535335
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CeriseHood5050/pseuds/CeriseHood5050
Summary: Before Luke and Sky, there was Emma.Emma was the kindest girl you would ever come across. She would help those who need it; give love to those who deserved it.But her parents don’t think she would ever come back. They drifted apart.But Emma still survives; she vows to return to her parents.She is at Hybrid Academy with her five best friends; Catalina of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anna von Cleves and Katheryn Howard.But what have fairies got to do with Emma's education?
Relationships: Sarah Jane Smith/Ruby White
Series: Hybrid Academy [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1850269
Kudos: 4





	1. Prologue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Emma has no choice but to leave the life she lived for the past decade.

**PROLOGUE**

I have everything ready to start my new life. My new school uniform; a white blouse, navy blue trousers and a navy blue blazer are hanging in my wardrobe ready for tomorrow. Tonight is my last night at Bannerman Road with my parents, Sarah Jane Smith and Ruby White; I intend to make the most of it.

I head into the living room, where my parents are waiting for me. ‘We want to give you this,’ Mummy says. She hands a scrapbook tied shut with a ribbon. The cover is a sparkly blue, and the ribbon is a deep-sea blue. ‘You’re growing up,’ Mummy says, wiping tears away from her sparkling green eyes. ‘You’re going to make lots of new friends, and we couldn’t be any prouder of you.’ Mum pulls us into a hug, and I can tell she is trying not to cry.  
‘I’m not leaving until the morning,’ I say. ‘Please, don’t get too emotional until then or I’ll start crying. Hybrid Academy is a fresh start for me; we can’t keep moving around because the teachers turn up at the door with torches and pitchforks looking for me. It is not healthy for any of us. But I want you two to promise me something before I go.’  
‘What is it?’ Mum asks.  
‘Don’t break up because of me. I do not want to be the cause of your relationship breaking down. It is already strained as much as it is, and me going to a boarding school could be the chance you need to get to know each other again. But please, for the love of God, do not let me come back and find out that one of you either tried to kill or killed the other. I will not abide that.’  
‘We know,’ Mummy nods. ‘We won’t do that.’ Now I am satisfied that at least my parents won’t try to kill each other while I’m away. ‘Now, you get some sleep. You’ve got a long journey ahead of you.’  
‘Mummy, we already went to Hybrid Academy. I’m teleporting there, so no, I don’t have a long journey ahead. Teleportation is instant.’  
‘Yes, of course,’ Mummy shakes her head. ‘But still, you’re growing up. You’ll have new friends, and maybe a boyfriend.’  
‘Oh, it could be a girlfriend.’  
‘Well, as long as they don’t intend to destroy the world, I don’t mind.’ I smile and say goodnight to my parents.

Tomorrow, I will be on a new planet, starting at a new school and meet people who are like me. For the first time, I will not be the only hybrid in the school.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a short chapter, but I hope to get another up soon. Hybrid Academy is my first work on here with characters from Six the Musical, and I hope to introduce them in the next chapter.
> 
> Cast  
> I always use the cast as to how I see these characters. For Henry VIII’s wives (those that are in Six the Musical), you can imagine whoever you want from Six the Musical. 
> 
> Sarah Jane Smith- Elisabeth Sladen  
> Ruby White- Julie Graham  
> Catalina of Aragon- Lauren Drew  
> Anne Boleyn- Maddison Bulleyment  
> Jane Seymour- Lauren Byrne  
> Anna of Cleves- Shekinah McFarlane  
> Katheryn Howard- Jodie Steele  
> Emma Smith-White- Georgie Henley  
> Catherine Parr- Athena Collins  
> Henry VIII- Keith Michell


	2. First Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Emma arrives at Hybrid Academy.

For the first time, I will be living in a dormitory with five other girls. Six beds are lining two of the walls; each of the quilt covers are in different colours; yellow, green, grey, red, pink and blue. Only the blue bed is free; my other roommates must be here. My bed is under a string of fairy lights. I put one of my bags on the bed and sit there for a while. I need to be alone; this is the first time I will live away from my parents.

I feel a need to describe the room, so that is what I will do. The walls are cream, and the window overlooks a beautiful garden with green grass and trees with blue leaves. The setting is a little different to Earth, but it still looks similar. Qetanish is not trying to look like Earth, I tell myself. Give the planet a chance.

As I think that, I imagine my parents. They are probably lonely without me, and I should do my best to be grateful for the situation I find myself within now. They can visit me whenever they like, and we can spend weekends together.

The door opens, and five girls tumble into the room, laughing. ‘Hello, Emma, right?’ One of the teenagers asks. She has brown hair that turns blonde at the tips, and she is wearing fairly dark lipstick and gold eyeshadow. She is wearing a yellow blouse, a black shirt and a black blazer with gold detailing. ‘I’m Catalina.’ She sits down beside me. ‘I know this might sound strange, but can I please hug you?’  
‘Sure,’ I nod. Catalina pulls me into a hug, and I find myself hugging her back. She is giving me a tight hug, but not too tight, and it makes me feel warm inside. By the time she releases me, I am smiling. ‘Thank you, I needed that.’ I notice that she is wearing black high heels with gold gems.  
‘That’s all right,’ Catalina smiles. ‘Hey, you’re wearing blue. All of the new students have to wear blue for a week until they settle on what colour or colours they want to wear.’  
‘Have I joined part way through the year?’  
‘No, we have to redo our first year. But we all failed our classes the first time around because people were trying to kill us all the time and disrupted everyone in the year. But we'll be your friends. You’ll settle in well.’

A girl wearing a sparkly green suit sits on the green bed, swinging her legs up, grinning at me. Her brown eyes twinkle with mischief. Part of her long, brown hair is styled into space buns, and the rest of it hangs down her back. ‘Bonjour,’ she says. ‘I’m Anne.’ I notice that she is wearing black heels with gems stuck on them.  
‘Are you sure you’re allowed to wear those shoes?’  
‘Hey, they’re cool!’ Anne moans.  
‘Agreed,’ the girl in red says. Her curly brown hair compliments her caramel-coloured skin. She gives me a warm smile as she shows me her heels. Instead of green and silver gems, she has red and silver. ‘I’m Anna nice to meet you, Emma.’ She is wearing a red leather-looking coat, a black t-shirt and matching trousers. It seems to be an odd mix to me, but it’s something that Anna appears to like.

One of the girls is wearing a grey dress and a black cardigan; she is leaning against the doorway and doesn’t make any move to greet me. Her blonde hair frames her pale face perfectly, and her brown eyes sparkle in the sunlight. Like Anne, Catalina and Anna, she is wearing black high heels, but with only silver gems. She gives me a little wave. ‘That’s Jane. She’s still a little shy around us, but we hope she’ll get used to us.’

The last girl is wearing a jewelled pink crop top and a knee-length skirt in the same colour. Her blonde hair is up in a high ponytail, and her tips are dyed pink. Over her top, she is wearing a pink blazer. She sits down on my other side. ‘Hey, Emma, I’m Katheryn, but you can call me Kitty.’  
‘Hey, Kitty,’ I smile. Already, I feel at ease with these girls.

‘Hey, we should play a game like twenty-one questions,’ Catalina says. ‘Who wants to start?’  
‘I will,’ Anne says. ‘Emma, do you want to answer the questions?’  
‘All right,’ I nod.

We all sit in a circle on the floor. ‘Where do you come from?’ Anne asks.  
‘I come from London; it’s on Earth.’  
‘How many schools have you been to?’ Catalina asks.  
‘I went to three primary schools and five secondary schools.’  
‘Ouch.’  
‘I was the new kid a lot; I never settled down because I would end up doing something weird, and the teachers and students would freak. I would then transfer to a new school, and the same thing would happen. A lot of schools refused to have me because of the strange things that happened.’  
‘What happened to make you transfer schools?’ Anna asks, leaning forward. Her eyes are glittering with excitement. ‘Don’t worry; we’re all Human-Qetesh hybrids here.’  
‘That’s good to know,’ I smile. ‘One time, I started sparkling like a glitter ball. No one knew how to react, so I had to go home. I couldn’t return to school after that.’

We continue playing until there is a knock at the door. Catalina opens it to reveal a girl wearing a cheerleading outfit in blue and white. Her blonde hair reaches to her shoulders. She is carrying a wicker basket in her hands. ‘Hello, is Emma Smith-White here?’ She asks.  
‘That’s me,’ I say, approaching the door. ‘What can I do for you?’  
‘Hello, my name is Bessie, and I am Head of Council for First-Year students. In this wicker basket, I brought you your schoolbooks, a map of the school, a student handbook and anything else you might need.’ She hands the basket over to me.  
‘Thanks, Bessie.’  
‘If you ever need anything or want a chat, come and find me.’  
‘Thank you. May I ask why you’re wearing a cheerleading outfit?’  
‘We get to wear whatever clothes we feel comfortable in at Hybrid Academy as long as we have the logo somewhere on our clothes.’  
‘Right, that makes sense.’  
‘There is also your timetable of mandatory classes. You can choose at least one elective class this year.’  
‘Thank you. I’ll see you around.’  
‘Wait, is it true that you’re Ruby White’s daughter?’  
‘Why? Is it a big deal?’  
‘Yes,’ Bessie nods. ‘The Qetesh exiled Ruby White hundreds of years ago because she thought Qetesh should view humans as equals, but they want her to return.’  
‘Oh, right.’  
‘I also see her as my heroine. She changed so much here, and it’s because of her that Hybrid Academy opened over three hundred years ago.’  
‘Wait, my mum is the reason why Hybrid Academy is here?’  
‘So you are Ruby’s daughter.’  
‘Yes, I am.’  
‘That’s awesome! Can I have a photo with you?’  
‘Sure.’ We pose in front of Bessie’s camera, and she snaps a picture.  
‘Thank you, Emma. My roommates will not believe me when I tell them that I know Ruby White’s daughter. Catch you later!’

Huh, instead of being a weirdo, someone likes me because of who my mum is and what she did. I head into the room and shut the door behind me. ‘I see you have the welcome package from Bessie,’ Jane smiles. ‘She’s awesome.’ She is rearranging some of her possessions on her nightstand. ‘She’s in an emergency dormitory.’  
‘How come?’ I ask.  
‘She got her hunger early and almost killed a student,’ Catalina says. ‘Everyone in this building is a Human-Qetesh hybrid, so we all support each other. Poor Bessie needs more help than some of the others in the emergency dormitories because her family abandoned her.’  
‘If she ever wants help, I’ll be happy to give it.’

‘Can we please carry on with our game? We’ve not finished asking all our questions!’ Anne moans. We all sit back in a circle and continue playing.


	3. Timetable

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Emma and her friends sort out her timetable for the next week.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the kudos on this story, it is much appreciated. Here I am with the next chapter; I hope you enjoy it.

When we finish playing, I check out the student handbook and my timetable. All the classes in bold font are those that I must attend.

**Maths  
English  
Science  
Hunger Management**

All the others are in italics, and they are the elective classes I can choose. Catalina, Anne, Jane, Anna and Kitty show me their timetables. They all have the same Maths, English, Science and Hunger Management. I hope I am in the same classes as them as I’ll at least recognise someone.

Before I can make any choices, someone knocks at the door. I open it to find Bessie and three other girls there. ‘Hi, Emma, I was hoping to see you,’ Bessie smiles. ‘I thought I should introduce you to three of my roommates. This is Maggie,’ Maggie waves at me. She tied her long, brown hair in a ponytail, and she is wearing a black t-shirt with a white guitar on it. She is wearing a navy-blue jacket with ‘HA’ embroidered on it, and she has a black skirt and flat black shoes. She is also wearing dark eyeshadow and lipstick. ‘The person behind me is Joan,’ Joan has blonde hair tied back in a ponytail. She is wearing silver hoop earrings, a black jumper with ‘HA’ stitched in silver, a black skirt, black tights and heels. ‘And the person next to her is Maria.’ Maria smiles at me. She has black, curly hair that compliments her coffee-coloured skin, and she is wearing a black t-shirt with a drum on it. On top of that is a black denim jacket with the initials ‘HA’. She is also wearing a black pleated skirt.   
‘Hi, it’s great to meet you all,’ I say.   
‘We live opposite you,’ Maria says. ‘That one is one of the emergency dorms.’   
‘I thought the emergency dorms would be closer to the members of staff than the students.’ I feel confused about the emergency dorms.   
‘No, this whole building is part of the emergency dorms, so all Human-Qetesh hybrids live together and can support each other.’  
‘That makes a bit more sense.’

I invite Maria, Bessie, Joan and Maggie inside. ‘This place is awesome,’ Bessie smiles. ‘The last group that lived here before you all moved in hated anything remotely human. They had to leave because they tried to kill several students.’   
‘Woah,’ Catalina says. ‘At least they are gone.’  
‘Yeah, we think they were part Bane,’ Maria says, sitting beside Catalina.   
‘What are Bane?’ I ask.

‘They look like the squids you have on Earth,’ Kitty explains. ‘The only difference is that they have one yellow eye in the middle of their head.’ My friends show me pictures, and I can see what they mean. ‘They are illegal on Qetanish, and that includes anything or anyone they make. Bane love creating archetypes to experiment on and then destroy.’   
‘What do they use the archetypes for?’   
‘Usually to take over other planets,’ Joan says. ‘They tried to do that here, but Ruby White led a rebellion against them- and won. She was a hero for a couple of years until her views started changing. But she’s a hero again now; many Qetesh want her to come back.’   
‘Yeah, I’m her daughter.’   
‘Bessie, I know you told us, and we didn’t believe you. Seriously, Emma? Are you Ruby White’s daughter? The one that started dating a human, Sarah Jane Smith?’   
‘I’m Sarah Jane’s daughter as well.’   
‘Wow,’ Maggie squeals. ‘This day keeps getting better. Can we have a picture with you?’   
‘Sure,’ I smile. We all gather around, and Maggie takes the photo. ‘I was going through my timetable-’  
‘Say no more!’ Maggie smiles. ‘We can all work together to find the perfect timetable for you.’ We all begin pouring over the student handbook and the lessons I can take. ‘We all need to do English, Maths, Science and Hunger Management, and the rest of it is optional.’   
‘What are the school days like?’ I ask. ‘I want to know what I am getting into before committing myself to anything.’   
‘Each day is different,’ Catalina says. ‘Some schools do it, so each day is the same, but the teachers at Hybrid Academy like making life enjoyable.’   
‘We have lessons Monday to Friday, but there are also optional classes and group activities you can do over the weekends,’ Bessie says. ‘Some are year-specific, but others are open to all.’

We begin looking at everything, making decisions about which classes will work for me. We make a list so we can keep track of everything. ‘Are you interested in fashion?’ Anne asks.   
‘Not really,’ I say. ‘Back on Earth, a lot of girls were. I preferred to read or write than talk about fashion and boy bands, so textiles and fashion are out of the picture.’ I then find a class I love, Creative Writing. ‘I’m going with Creative Writing for one of my options. I love reading and writing, and it was my way of escaping when life on Earth was too much.’   
‘That’s great,’ Anna says, circling it with a green pen.   
‘We all have to do a language, either one on Earth or one from Qetanish. The choice is yours,’ Kitty says. I lean back and look down the list. There are so many Earth languages to choose from, but I think I want to honour both my Human and Qetesh nature so that I would select a Qetanish language.   
‘Do any of you do a Qetanish language?’ I ask. Everyone nods. ‘Which is easier?’   
‘Ancient Qetanish is fun, but hardly anyone uses it,’ Joan says. ‘It is better not to go for that one if you want to do a modern language.’   
‘I think I would want to do a modern language. What is Qetanish like?’   
‘It’s great,’ Kitty says, grinning. ‘That is the one all five of us do, and it will be great if you join us. You will have little catching up to do; many classes have a lot of catching up.’ I decide to go with Qetanish, and then history.

I submit the timetable I want and get it back by the end of the day.

**Monday**

Lesson 1- Maths  
Lesson 2- Science  
Break  
Lesson 3- Qetanese  
Lesson 4- History  
Lunch  
Lesson 5- Creative Writing  
Lesson 6- Hunger Management

**Tuesday**

Lesson 1- English  
Lesson 2- Creative Writing  
Break  
Lesson 3- Maths  
Lesson 4- Hunger Management  
Lunch  
Lesson 5- Qetanese  
Lesson 6- Science

**Wednesday**

Lesson 1- Creative Writing  
Lesson 2- Hunger Management  
Break  
Lesson 3- English  
Lesson 4- Maths  
Lunch  
Lesson 5- Science  
Lesson 6- Qetanese

**Thursday**

Lesson 1- Hunger Management  
Lesson 2- History  
Break  
Lesson 3- Science  
Lesson 4- Qetanese  
Lunch  
Lesson 5- English  
Lesson 6- Maths

**Friday**

Lesson 1- Science  
Lesson 2- History  
Break  
Lesson 3- Hunger Management  
Lesson 4- Hunger Management  
Lunch  
Lesson 5- Qetanese  
Lesson 6- Creative Writing

I compare my timetable with Catalina, Anne, Jane, Anna and Kitty when it arrives. We are all in the same English, Maths, Science, Qetanese and Hunger Management classes. I have history with Catalina, Anne and Anna and Creative Writing with Jane and Kitty. At least I will know some people in my classes on Monday.


	4. Monday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It is Emma's first school day at Hybrid Academy, but all is not as it seems.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally finished chapter four!  
> I'll try to get the next chapter out soon, but I can't make any promises.

On Monday morning, I wake up feeling refreshed. I smile at my school uniform; today will be my first school day at Hybrid Academy. I intend to make the most of it. When I write home to my parents, I don’t want them to worry about me. At least I already made some friends, so I don’t have to worry about that.

We all walk out of Ruby Hall together and walk to the Maths and Science building for our first lesson. The sun is shining in between the cracks in the clouds, and students are scattered around campus. Each of them are in groups, but soon disperse to walk to their first lesson. I must wake up before Maths- I hate lessons first thing in the morning, particularly when classes start at half eight. The Maths and Science building is made of white stone and has grass growing on the roof. A cool breeze whips through my brown hair as I smile. We approach two automatic doors, and they open. The ground floor and the first floor have a hard ground; they must be the science classrooms. We keep heading up to the second floor. Here, the floor is carpeted, and the walls are light green. All the doors have glass windows in it so students and staff can see what is going on in the classroom.

‘Here we are,’ Catalina smiles. The door to the classroom is standing open, and the teacher is preparing for the lesson. Anne knocks on the door. The teacher looks up and smiles. She has dyed red hair and is wearing a red dress and a black cardigan. She is also wearing red heels and a lot of make-up. Her eyes are dark red, and it takes all my strength to keep looking at her. It feels like she is looking into my soul. ‘Miss Carmine, this is our new roommate, Emma Smith-White.’  
‘Hello, Emma,’ she says, the smile still plastered on her face. ‘I’m glad you are joining us today.’ She hands me a book, and Catalina leads me to my seat. All the tables are in rows, so I have only one person beside me— thank goodness that is Catalina.

As a teacher, Miss Carmine is strict. She gives us a lot of homework, and I cannot concentrate on the lesson. Usually, I can focus on maths. It is never a problem to focus on. When the bell rings, relief flows through me. I pick up my belongings but quickly lose grip on them. My hands shake terribly, and I try to hide my shock. Catalina notices it and gathers my books. My friends gather around me. ‘Have you always had a problem with your hands?’ Anne asks. I shake my head.  
‘Let’s get you to the nurse’s office,’ Jane says. ‘She’ll know what to do.’ We head out of the classroom. Jane supports me as Anna takes my bag off my back and helps Catalina put my books back.

We walk down the stairs as a group and head outside. ‘Ruby Hall has its own nurse, and it’s the closest to the science building,’ Anne says. ‘Let’s go there.’ I nod. There is no way I want a long walk, so if Ruby Hall is the closest, that is where we will go.

The door to the nurse’s office opens before Anna knocks. ‘Nurse Dawn, you must have sensed us coming.’ Anna stands back so I can see Nurse Dawn. She has long black hair swept up under her nurse’s hat and is wearing a short-sleeved floral dress and an apron over that. She has sparkling brown eyes, and her appearance comforts me.  
‘Hello, Anna, yes I did sense you coming. How can I help?’ She opens the door wider and allows us to enter.

I sit down opposite Nurse Dawn. ‘Nurse Dawn, this is our new roommate, Emma. She arrived over the weekend,’ Kitty explains.  
‘Yes, I remember you were telling me when you came in for your check-ups,’ Nurse Dawn smiles at me. ‘I assume you didn’t come here because you wanted a check-up.’  
‘No, it seems to be more serious than that,’ I say.  
‘I will do a full scan and check-up,’ Nurse Dawn says, then turns to my friends. ‘I can let two of you stay. When we know the results, I will send for the rest of you.’ Catalina and Jane decide to stay, and I relax when the others leave. If there is bad news, I do not want the others to be here when I am doing the tests. I must stand on the scales; then Nurse Dawn measures my height. She then uses a device to scan me. ‘This checks how much of your soul you have,’ Nurse Dawn explains when I ask her. Her face drains of colour when she gets the results back.

‘Emma, you will want to sit down for this,’ she says. I sit, and Catalina and Jane sit beside me and hold my hands. ‘I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but you are dying.’  
‘What?’ My voice comes out at a whisper.  
‘How is this possible?’ Catalina asks. ‘Who decided to kill her?’  
‘I was able to trace the rest of Emma’s soul back to Miss Carmine. Can any of you think why Miss Carmine would want to kill Emma?’  
‘No, I never met her until today!’ I scream and start rocking back and forth.  
‘Is there anything about Miss Carmine that we could use against her?’ Catalina asks.  
‘Or something that would explain why she started killing Emma?’ Jane adds. ‘I don’t fancy blackmailing a teacher.’  
‘You blackmailed a teacher last year because he was killing your little sister. This is basically the same thing.’  
‘Okay, I’ll be willing to blackmail if it comes to that.’ Catalina nods, and my friends turn back to Nurse Dawn.  
‘Miss Carmine grew up with Ruby White. They used to be close friends until they went to Rainspell Island. I don’t know what happened, but they started fighting soon after our arrival. Ruby’s views changed at that point; you must understand. She started viewing humans as equals rather than food, something Miss Carmine hated. Your teacher started spreading lies about Ruby, all sorts of things I wish not to go into. If you want to find out more, you must consult someone else or your history books.’  
‘Mum is in the history books?’ I ask, stunned.  
‘Ruby White is your mother?’ Nurse Dawn asks. I nod. ‘That explains a lot. Emma, you must rest. Catalina, Jane, stay with her. I will tell the others what Miss Carmine is doing; then I will go to the headmaster. He will know what to do.’

‘At least she is not the head of Ruby Hall, or you would have to interact with her more often,’ Catalina says and opens her laptop to email her teachers. ‘We will have to go to Hunger Management, but the other teachers will let us have the day off.’  
‘At least Hunger Management is at the end of the day,’ I say. ‘By that time, I should have some strength back.’  
‘Lie down for a while,’ Jane suggests. ‘You need the rest.’  
‘Nah, I want to read my history book.’  
‘Is that the best idea?’  
‘I want to know more about this world,’ I insist, and Jane gives in.  
‘As soon as you feel tired, go to sleep.’ I nod and curl up with my book. I smile when I find that my mum takes up a whole section, but I would want to talk to her about her past first before reading about it.

The day before I left Earth, Mum and Mummy gave me a mobile phone so that I could call them. I find Mum’s number and select call. The call dials out, so I try texting. My parents were able to install upgrades so I can call them wherever I am. The text does not send, so I try Mummy.

She picks up.  
‘Hi Mummy, it’s-’  
‘Who are you?’ A boy asks on the other end.  
‘This is Mummy’s mobile number; no one else should answer it.’  
‘Sarah Jane is not here, so I can take a message for her.’  
‘Mummy never leaves her mobile lying around; she always takes it wherever she goes.’  
‘She left it behind this time, and it was ringing. I thought I should pick it up in case it was important. May I take a message?’  
‘Sure,’ I say. ‘My name is Emma Smith-White, her daughter.’  
‘Emma Smith-White? That’s awesome! I’m your little brother, Luke.’  
‘Hey, Luke,’ I say, a little uncertain.  
‘Sarah Jane and Ruby talk about you all the time; they want us to meet at some point.’  
‘Right, okay,’ I say. ‘My parents hadn’t mentioned that they adopted you, so it comes as a surprise.’ Luke pauses for a moment.  
‘They… haven’t told you? But they promised they would.’  
‘I don’t know what happened, but I have not got a missed call or anything.’  
‘Right. Can I still take that message?’  
‘Yeah, just let Mum know I have some questions and ask her to call me back.’  
‘What sort of questions? If you don’t mind me asking, that is.’  
‘I need to find out more about Mum’s past. She appears in the history book I have, and I thought it would be better if I ask her about it first before I read it, so I get my facts straight.’  
‘Right, I’ll tell her.’  
‘Thanks, Luke. Talk to you soon.’  
‘Yeah. Bye.’  
‘Bye.’ I hang up and smile.

‘Who was that?’ Jane asks.  
‘A little brother, I didn’t know I had.’  
‘Your parents didn’t tell you they were going to adopt?’ Catalina asks.  
‘No, but I’m sure I’ll like him once I talked to him more.’ Catalina and Jane shoot glances at each other before they turn back to me. Whatever they are thinking about, they will not enlighten me on the topic.

My phone doesn’t ring for the rest of the lesson; I hope Luke will tell my parents what is going on. At breaktime, Anne, Anna, and Kitty return to comfort me. ‘It’s okay,’ I assure them. ‘Nurse Dawn will sort it out, and I’ll be back to normal.’  
‘Emma,’ Catalina says, quietly. ‘I hate to break it to you, but those who have their souls stolen never survive.’ I let the news sink in for a moment.  
‘Then I’ll be the first because I have so much to live for.’ I put a brave smile on my face. ‘I’ll be fine.’

Before Qetanese starts, I feel great. I am ready to conquer Miss Carmine and get my soul back. I grab my bag and go with my friends to the lesson. The classroom is on the ground floor, like all the language classes. Our classroom door is standing open, and we walk in. ‘Good morning, Mr White,’ Catalina says when we step in.  
‘Good morning, Lina,’ Mr White greets. He has short brown hair and sparkling brown eyes. ‘Is this Emma?’  
‘That’s right, sir. But we have a problem.’  
‘Is Miss Carmine killing her? She always hated my sister and her beliefs.’  
‘What has that got to do with it?’ I ask.

‘My sister used to be close with Miss Carmine, but Ruby’s views changed. When she returned from Rainspell Island, she convinced everyone in the family that we should view humans as equals. Ruby found hybrids in terrible conditions, and we promised to help them. But-’ My mobile starts ringing.

‘Sorry, I should have turned it off.’ I check to see who’s calling. ‘It’s Mum. I was expecting a call from her today.’  
‘I’m sure you can call her at lunch,’ he says. I text Mum to let her know to call me later, and I turn my phone off.  
‘So, what happened?’ I asked.  
‘Our rebellion failed. The hybrids were all devoured. My mother was beheaded, Father hung, drawn, and quartered. My younger sisters all went to a children’s home. I was the only one to escape punishment because the government didn’t think I was part of it. My older sister suffered a fate worse than death. The other Qetesh imprisoned her with nothing but her hunger and a games system for company. She upgraded the games system and travelled around. Last I heard, around fifty-six years ago, Ruby was heading to Earth.’

Mummy was born around fifty-six years ago. Does that mean Mum arrived on Earth the year Mummy was born?

‘You not heard from your sister since?’ Catalina asks.  
‘No,’ Mr White says. ‘Ruby will be in your history books, so if you want to find out more, that is the best place to look.’  
‘Or I can ask my mum about what happened,’ I say. ‘She shares the same name as your sister so they could be the same person.’ Mr White nods and lets me call Mum. I slip outside so I can have the conversation in private.

‘Hi, Emma, how are you?’  
‘I’m great, thanks.’ I take a deep breath. How can I talk to Mum about the following topic? ‘I need to ask you a few questions if you don’t mind.’  
‘That’s fine. What is it?’  
‘I need to talk to you about your past at Qetanish.’  
‘I thought that would come up.’ Mum says after a few moments. ‘I didn’t think it would be so soon.’  
‘I know, I’m sorry, Mum.’  
‘Don’t be. I’m sure you have a lot of- wait, aren’t you meant to be in a lesson?’  
‘The teacher excused me so I could call you.’  
‘Right, okay. What do you want to know?’

Mum begins telling me about her past, about how her little brother, Alexander, escaped from judgement as the authorities said he had no part in the uprising. ‘I spoke to him until I arrived on Earth,’ Mum says. ‘He must think I am dead.’  
‘I think he is my teacher for Qetanese,’ I say.  
‘He always liked teaching others,’ Mum agrees.  
‘And I’m dying.’  
‘WHAT?!’  
‘Miss Carmine is killing me.’  
‘I didn’t know she was teaching at Hybrid Academy. Emma, listen to me-’ Mum gets cut off before she can finish.  
‘Mum? MUM?!’ All I can hear is static. I hang up and put my head in my hands.

‘Emma?’ Catalina asks. ‘Mr White asked me to check on- are you okay?’  
‘I think something happened to Mum, and I can’t help her!’  
‘Oh, Emma.’ Catalina sits beside me for a few moments. ‘Do you want to go back to our dormitory or do you think you can handle the lesson?’  
‘I already missed one lesson today; I cannot miss another.’  
‘Mr White will understand if you don’t feel up to it.’  
‘No, I am going to lesson.’

Thankfully, when we get back, Mr White is only handing out the books. I sit beside Catalina again, and we write our names, year and teacher on our books. I write everything down. At least we are only going over the basics today. However, it takes up a lot of my concentration, and I feel tired after the lesson. I will go to Hunger Management at the end of the day as that lesson could be useful. I will also go to history, but I am unsure if I will have enough energy to go to Creative Writing. Maybe I’ll take a nap at lunch, see if that makes a difference.

We all head up to history, and I realise that I am falling behind my friends. Someone pushes me in the back, and I fall. He turns to face me, and I see a flash of cold blue eyes and red hair. ‘So, you’re Ruby White’s kid, huh?’  
‘What has that got to do with you?’  
‘No one messes with me, got it? Especially not a sucio mestizo. You might have a powerful mother, but she is not here.’  
‘I don’t need my mother to tell me not to mess with you.’ I stand up. ‘I will not bother you any further.’ I begin to head up the stairs, but he blocks me. ‘I will not bother you. Please, let me go to my lesson, please.’  
‘You started having problems in maths, right?’  
‘I have no idea what you are talking about.’ It is better to deny everything than to admit that Miss Carmine is stealing my soul.  
‘Miss Carmine is also the head of Ruby Hall. You can’t escape her. I could help you.’  
‘You bully me one minute then decide to help me the next. Why?’  
‘As I said before, you’re Ruby White’s kid. I am the Head Student at Ruby Hall, so it’s my job to look out for the new students.’  
‘Bullying doesn’t help.’  
‘You took the place that my little sister should have! Mary worked all her life to get here and you with your so-called amazing mother and skin like diamonds turn up, and the dean accepts you and not her!’  
‘That’s not my fault; the dean must have his reason for not accepting your little sister. I played no part in that.’  
‘You played every part in it. Now, you better start avoiding me. If I ever catch sight of you, you’ll wish you were never born.’ He walks away, down the stairs and out the door. All the students, including my friends, moved on to class. I glance down at my timetable to see where I need to go and start climbing the stairs. I am already late, and it would be better if I turn up.

I get to the right floor and start looking for the correct classroom. Then, Anne walks out of one of the classrooms and shuts the door behind her. She catches my eye. ‘It will be best if you don’t go to history if you are Ruby’s daughter. The teacher hates her and vowed to destroy any child of hers.’  
‘Yeah, I’m not gonna take my chances.’  
‘What happened?’  
‘The head student at Ruby Hall beat me up.’  
‘There is no head student at Ruby Hall. The only one who claims to be that is Henry Tudor, a cousin of Ruby White.’  
‘How the hell did I end up getting related to a school bully?’ Anne shrugs.  
‘The teacher will come soon, so you better scarper. I’ll tell your friends what happened.’  
‘Thanks, Anne,’ I take off, down the hall. As I run down the stairs, I try to figure out what happened. Today is my first day; I am not meant to be dying and getting bullied!

When I get outside, the cool autumn breeze hits me, and I decide to head back to Ruby Hall and hope to find some peace.

When I unlock the door to our room and sit on my bed, I think about my day. Today is the worst day of my life, and that’s saying a lot. People bullied me for being different, but they never tried to _kill me_. I never felt like I was in a life-threatening situation. Maybe I should call home and beg them to take me back.

But it’s only my first day, and I haven’t finished it yet. Maybe I should sleep, make sure I have enough strength for later. I lie down and feel my eyelids flicker.

‘Emma?’ A welsh-sounding voice asks. ‘Emma, can you hear me?’ I open my eyes to stare into the warm brown eyes of Catalina. ‘Anne said you might be here after what happened in history. Be thankful that the school bully made you late.’  
‘What happened?’  
‘The teacher tried to kill some of the students, but we alerted the headmaster. That teacher won’t come back, but we now have a lesson that doesn’t have a teacher, so the headmaster said that we should study on our own.’  
‘Okay,’ I say and get my history book out. ‘Did the headmaster set anything specific?’  
‘He wants us to look at Ruby White.’ I open my history book but struggle to concentrate. I put the book back and groan.

‘Still can’t focus?’ Anne asks.  
‘No. I want to work, but if my concentration is at an all-time low, how can I do that?’ We all look around the room.

Someone knocks at the door. I freeze on the bed. Jane jumps up to open it, but Catalina grabs her arm and pulls her towards me. She gestures for Anne, Anna and Kitty to join us. ‘We have no idea who that is,’ Catalina points out. ‘It could be Miss Carmine trying to get to Emma. Qetesh can only feed on their victims when they are in the same room.’  
‘But it could be someone that wants to help,’ Jane argues.  
‘We can’t trust that until we hear them speak. Qetesh don’t have the technology to copy voices, so when they speak, we’ll know who it is.’ We all face the door again. The person knocks again.  
‘Hello? Is anyone in there?’ A female voice asks. It is one of the voices I heard every day of my childhood.  
‘I recognise that voice anywhere!’ I squeal.  
‘Wait,’ Catalina says. ‘We still don’t know her name.’ She turns back to the door once she knows that I will remain on the bed. I try to stop fidgeting with the cover, but I cannot contain my excitement. ‘Who are you?’  
‘My name is Ruby White; I came to check on my daughter. We had a conversation earlier, and she said she was dying.’ Catalina turns to me, and I nod.  
‘I’m going to unlock the door,’ Catalina says and starts walking towards it. ‘Don’t approach Emma until we know your true intentions.’ She unlocks the door, and Mum steps inside. I smile, and Mum finds somewhere to sit down. She sits on a chair on the opposite side of the room.

‘Emma, do you remember one of the things I told you about Rita Carmine?’  
‘You told me so much about her that it’s difficult to remember everything.’  
‘Rita will never stop trying to kill you. It will end in either kill or be killed.’ I nod. ‘It can’t keep going on like this, Emma. It must end soon.’  
‘How are things back at home?’ Mum groans.  
‘I am giving you the worst-case scenario, and you are asking me how things are back at home!’  
‘I’m trying to lighten the mood!’  
‘No, you are avoiding the topic. Emma, Rita could end up killing you today.’  
‘Yes, that is the worst-case scenario. Can we stop Rita?’ Mum nods.  
‘I wouldn’t have come here without a plan, but there is a problem.’

‘What is it?’ Jane asks.  
‘I cannot go through with it. Rita used to be my friend. If I face her now, I don’t know what I will do.’  
‘It’s okay,’ I say. ‘You have us. We’ll help.’ Mum smiles at me.  
‘It’s about time I faced her. Thank you for helping me.’  
‘Don’t thank us yet,’ Anne warns. ‘The plan still needs to work, and we’re not giving up on Emma easily.’ Mum nods and tells us the plan.

I walk outside and breathe in the fresh air. I can feel the wind in my hair, the autumn sun shining down on me. There can never be a better time to be alive. Miss Carmine must have spotted me because she walks out of the maths and science block. ‘Do you have a free minute, Miss Smith-White?’  
‘I was only going out for some fresh air before returning to my studies.’ Miss Carmine nods.  
‘I was hoping that I could talk to you about your work.’  
‘I couldn’t concentrate today; it will only be a one-off.’  
‘I hope so.’ Miss Carmine steps forward. Please, let this work. I look at Miss Carmine in the eye.  
‘I need to get back to work.’ She grabs my arm, and I can’t feel my hand. I scream in agony as I fall to my knees.

‘Cut it out, Rita!’ Mum yells, stepping out of her hiding place. ‘Your argument is with me, not with her. Give her life essence back, and I will do your bidding.’  
‘But then you won’t suffer.’ Rita turns back to me, and I can see the hatred in her eyes.  
‘You turned against me, against the fairies—’  
‘That was you, not me! I tried to help them; you sided with King Oberon and Queen Titania!’  
‘As any person should. You have grown soft since your incarceration. What happened? Oh, yes. You mated with a human!’ Mum sighs, then she grabs Miss Carmine.  
‘Let my daughter go!’ Her voice sounds distorted, and I begin to shake. Miss Carmine drops me from the shock, and I run towards the entrance of the building. Catalina grabs my hand and pulls me into the bush before Miss Carmine knows where I went.

The bush is uncomfortable. We sit on the dry grass, and twigs dig into us. All six of us huddle together. Squashed is the right word because the bush was so small. We had to keep our heads low and tuck our bodies out of sight. Kitty has tears in her eyes, and Anna puts a hand over Kitty’s mouth to stop her from crying and give away our position. Jane keeps her eyes on the ground and clutches Anne’s arm. Catalina looks to me and mouths ‘are you okay?’ I nod and turn my attention back to Mum and Miss Carmine.

‘You betrayed our friends.’  
‘I tried to help them. Now, you are killing an innocent child.’  
‘You see your daughter as innocent? She will turn into a killer eventually, mark my words.’  
‘What?’ Mum sounds confused. I’m about to stand up and question Miss Carmine when Catalina pulls me back down and shakes her head.  
‘Hybrid Academy is not what you thought it would be. It is not to help Qetesh hybrids.’  
‘Why should I believe you when you are killing my daughter?’ Miss Carmine smirks at Mum, and I have the urge to get in the middle and stand up for Mum. Catalina gives me a look, and I stay put.

‘I won’t believe you,’ Mum says. ‘I know when you are lying, Rita Carmine. Either give Emma her soul back, or I’ll make you.’  
‘Fine,’ Rita shrugs. ‘Make me.’ Mum growls.  
‘I didn’t want it to go this way, but you leave me with no choice.’ Catalina gets her phone out of her pocket as Mum summons her stomach.  
‘What are you doing?’ Jane whispers.  
‘Calling the authorities,’ Catalina whispers back. ‘It’s what Ruby told us to do, remember?’ Anna nods, and Catalina calls them. ‘Hello,’ she whispers. ‘My name is Catalina Aragon; I’m a student at Hybrid Academy. One of the teachers, Rita Carmine, is killing Emma Smith-White. Really? Oh, that’s great. Yes, we will. Thank you. Goodbye.’ Catalina hangs up. ‘We need to get you somewhere safe, Emma.’ She looks around and notices that Mum is distracting Rita. ‘Let’s go!’ We all run inside and shut the door behind us. We can hear Rita scream in anger as we run back to our room.

I collapse on my bed and close my eyes. I can hear snippets of conversation, but nothing tangible. Maybe everything will become apparent after I had a nap.

When I wake up, it is dark outside. Mum is sitting on a chair beside my bed. ‘Good, you’re awake,’ she smiles. ‘I was worrying because I thought I wouldn’t get to talk to you before I left.’  
‘What happened? Miss Carmine—’  
‘It’s all sorted now; you do not need to worry. You also have your life essence back. I called the teachers to tell them what happened; you and your friends can take tomorrow off.’  
‘But it will only be my second day, and I haven’t attended all of my classes today.’

‘We explained everything to the teachers,’ Catalina says. ‘They have set work for us to complete tomorrow and hand it back in when we next see our teachers.’  
‘But Miss Carmine teaches Maths,’ Anne says. ‘We can’t have another run-in with her.’  
‘You won’t,’ Mum says. ‘She left. The dean, Mr Coleman, sacked her. He also reported her to the police, and she is awaiting trial.’  
‘But who will be the new maths teacher? We do not want a repeat of what happened with Miss Carmine.’  
‘Mr Coleman is going through all the teachers to make sure that they are fit to teach all hybrid species so nothing like this will happen again. He already talked to Mr White, and he is safe. He was—is my little brother and always values his family after what happened. I don’t know who your new teacher will be, but I’m sure that whoever they are, they will be great.’ Mum turns back to me. ‘Chin up, girls. The universe is changing for the better.’ She sighs. ‘I have to go now. Sarah and Luke will be worried sick about me.’ She stands up and stands in the middle of the room. ‘I would love to stay and help, but I’ve got commitments. Besides, Luke was made by the Bane. The Qetesh won’t accept him lightly.’ She presses a green button on her bracelet and vanishes in a glittering white light.

I lie back on my pillow and stare up at the ceiling. Mum was here; she protected me. But she will not always be here to help. ‘We need to start helping each other, supporting each other and have a plan in case something like this happens again,’ I say.  
‘We can do that another day,’ Catalina assures me. ‘For now, you rest. Tomorrow, we will study and go into town. We’ll get you a new uniform for next week, how about that?’  
‘I have no money.’  
‘The school pays for it,’ Anna smiles. ‘You do not need to worry.’ I smile and think about what sort of uniform I would want. Almost everyone in our year is wearing the same uniform that I am except for my roommates, Bessie, Joan, Maria and Maggie. I will want something that stands out a little, but not too much. I begin to think about the uniform I would wish to have as I drift off to sleep.

Tomorrow will be a better day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translation:  
> sucio mestizo- filthy half-breed (Spanish)


	5. Emma's New Uniform

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The day after Emma's near death, Emma and her friends go shopping.

When I wake up on Tuesday morning, I find that I want to turn over and go back to sleep. Anne is already awake, and she is shaking Kitty. ‘Annie, no,’ Kitty moans. ‘It’s too early.’   
‘No, it isn’t. I want to go to town!’   
‘It’s half six in the morning.’   
‘Well done Anne,’ Catalina moans. ‘I hate you for this.’   
‘You don’t.’ Anne begins shaking Anna. ‘Anna, back me up!’   
‘Can you please let us sleep for a little longer?’ I groan. My head hurts, and it feels like I want to sleep forever.   
‘Don’t you remember that Lina booked an appointment for you with Nurse Dawn for seven this morning?’ Jane asks. ‘You’ll want to get ready.’   
‘Seven is too early.’   
‘Come on, Emma, you must get up.’   
‘Please Jane, five more minutes.’   
‘Fine,’ Jane groans and rolls her eyes. ‘But if you aren’t out of bed in five minutes, I’ll have Anne jump on your bed.’   
‘NOOO!’ I climb out of bed and find my navy-blue uniform. The smell of eggs wafts through the room as Jane starts cooking. ‘Jane, you don’t have to cook for me. I’ll get some toast on the way out.’   
‘No buts, you’re having scrambled egg and toast,’ Jane says. ‘You almost died yesterday, and I wouldn’t be a good friend if I didn’t cook breakfast for you.’

‘We’re also going to get your new uniform today,’ Catalina says when I’m having breakfast. ‘When you come back, you can have a little more rest.’   
‘But we need to get our work done first,’ Jane interrupts. ‘We missed almost all of yesterday.’ Something tells me that the teachers aren’t going to complain when they realise what we had to go through yesterday. I continue eating my breakfast without making any comment and grab my blazer before heading out.

The weather is still warm, and I begin smiling as I walk towards Nurse Dawn’s office. I stand outside, clenching and unclenching my hands. Nurse Dawn is a lovely woman; I shouldn’t feel nervous. I raise my hand to knock, but the door opens. Nurse Dawn smiles at me. ‘Emma, I’m glad you came.’ She stands aside and lets me enter. I sit down on one of the comfortable chairs, and Nurse Dawn sits opposite me. ‘How are you feeling?’   
‘I feel tired. When Anne woke me up, I felt like I wanted to sleep forever.’   
‘Have you had anything to eat yet?’   
‘Yes, Jane made me scrambled egg and toast. She’s a great cook.’ I notice that Nurse Dawn is noting down what I say. As no one ever survived a Qetesh trying to eat them, Nurse Dawn would want to find out everything she can.   
‘How much sleep did you get last night?’   
‘Maybe four hours. It took me a long time to get to sleep; then, I had a nightmare.’   
‘That would probably partly explain why you didn’t want to wake up this morning.’   
‘Yeah… probably.’   
‘Miss Carmine was also the head of Ruby Hall as well as your maths teacher. You’re lucky she didn’t get much further; otherwise, you might have a worse reaction.’   
‘Do you know who the new head of Ruby Hall will be?’   
‘I’m afraid not, but I’m sure Mr Coleman will be looking into every person to make sure that they have the right qualifications for the role. Take your shoes off and step on the scales, please.’

The rest of the tests go as expected, and Nurse Dawn says I can bring a friend tomorrow when I get the results back. I head back to my room and tell my friends what happened when we hear a knock at the door. Anne bounds up to it, but Catalina sits her back down. ‘You’re too hyper for this time of the morning,’ she explains to Anne. Jane opens the door.   
‘Hey, Cathy. What can we do for you?’   
‘Is Emma Smith-White here?’   
‘Yes, she is. Emma!’   
‘Do you have to yell?’ I moan. ‘It’s still too early.’   
‘There’s someone here who wants to meet you.’ I get up from my bed and walk over to the door. A woman with beautiful chocolate-coloured eyes stares back at me. She has black frizzy hair tied in a side ponytail, and she is wearing a pair of dark blue jeans, a black t-shirt and a blue blazer with the initials ‘HA’ embroidered in silver.

‘Hello,’ she says. ‘I thought you might be in, so I thought I would come over and say hi.’   
‘Hi, Cathy. It’s great to meet another person.’   
‘Yes, it is.’   
‘So, how do you know Jane?’ I stand aside and let Cathy inside.   
‘We used to be roommates,’ Cathy explains. ‘Anne was causing so much trouble that everyone failed their exams at the end of last year. I was the only one who passed, and so had to move in with some second-years. I miss my friends and keep wishing I also failed. Maybe I’ll fail my second year, and you guys will pass your first-year test so we can all be together.’  
‘Cathy, you’re smart,’ Jane says. ‘Don’t worry about us, okay?’ Cathy nods.   
‘In the second year, we have seven roommates rather than six.’   
‘How come?’ I ask.   
‘Most friendship groups are formed in the first year,’ Cathy explains. ‘Best friends are grouped together, but it makes it harder if friends fall out.’   
‘I can imagine,’ Jane nods. We all sit down, and I let my friends catch up.

I open my computer to check my emails and see what work needs doing quickly. So far, I haven’t got anything. After I unlock my phone, I check my messages and find I have a missed call from Mummy. I will call her back later today. I send her a quick text to let her know this, and she replies immediately. She, Mum and Luke are going shopping to get Luke his school uniform as he is starting next week. They will be going out this afternoon, so it would be better if I call them now. ‘Is it all right if I call my mums?’ I ask my friends. They nod, and I walk to the corner to take the call. I would at least like to have the illusion of privacy.

‘Hello, Emma,’ Mummy says.   
‘Hi Mummy, how are you doing?’   
‘Great, we’re going to get Luke’s school uniform this afternoon. He’s such a smart boy. The Bane and made him-’  
‘Did they say why they created Luke?’ If Luke was made by the Bane, like Mum confirmed yesterday, I should probably be wary of him.   
‘He was created so the Bane could try and improve their product, Bubbleshock. But after I threatened them and slammed into the factory with their bus, they tried to take over Earth and use it as a world to breed more Bane.’   
‘Right,’ I say.   
‘Luke is no longer under their control, but Ruby is still keeping an eye on him.’   
‘Mummy, did you know that Bane and Qetesh are enemies?’   
‘No, I thought it was just Ruby. She wouldn’t explain as to why she hated Bubbleshock with a passion.’   
‘Maybe because the Bane tried to take over her homeworld and Mum had to lead a rebellion against them?’   
‘That would explain a lot. She’s still keeping an eye on Luke,’ Mummy chuckles. ‘Luke seems to ignore her a lot.’   
‘Could the—'

‘Sarah Jane, come and look at this,’ Luke says, I can hear the amazement in his voice.   
‘I have to go, Emma. Love you.’   
‘Love y—’ Mummy ends the call and cuts me off.

What just happened? Has Luke already replaced me?

Of course, I expected Mummy to talk about him, but I hoped that I could get a proper conversation from her. Before I left Earth, we would talk about anything and everything. Now that Luke is in her life, it seems like she barely has five minutes to spare for me.

‘Is your Mum all right?’ Jane asks.   
‘Mummy barely talked to me. All she talked about was Luke.’ I place my phone in the drawer on my nightstand. ‘We didn’t even talk for five minutes; then she had to go because Luke wanted to show her something.’   
‘She should have told Luke to wait a few minutes,’ Catalina says. Everyone nods.   
‘What she did was rude,’ Anna says. ‘I don’t mean to pry, but it seems she cut the call off before you could say “love you too”.’ I nod. ‘That’s even worse! Love and respect are critical for Qetesh. They pride themselves on respecting others unless they have a reason to hate them.’   
‘Hey, chin up, Emma, you can talk to your mothers another time,’ Jane says. Cathy’s phone starts buzzing, and she groans.

‘Henry?’ Catalina asks.   
‘Yeah,’ Cathy groans and switches her phone off. ‘Henry Tudor is the worst.’   
‘Yeah, I had a run-in with him yesterday,’ I say. ‘He seems to have it out for me because he thinks I played a part in the dean not accepting his sister into Hybrid Academy.’  
‘That is not the reason,’ Cathy says. ‘He tried to date all of us, then tried to kill us. The dean realised what was happening, and we reported Henry. I’m surprised he’s still here. Mr Coleman didn’t accept his sister because he was worried she would turn out the same as Henry.’   
‘That makes sense,’ I say. ‘But surely Mr Coleman should have expelled Henry?’   
‘I think his dad bribed Mr Coleman to keep Henry here,’ Anne says. ‘Henry wouldn’t be here otherwise.’ I sigh and glance around the room. Do we have to have this conversation now? Cathy’s phone starts buzzing.

‘I’ve got a lesson soon, so I better get going,’ she says as she stands up. ‘It was nice meeting you, Emma.’   
‘It was great meeting you too, Cathy.’ Cathy runs out of the door, and her footsteps fade away.

‘I don’t have any work to catch up on, so I can take you into town now,’ Jane offers.   
‘That will be nice,’ I agree and turn to the other. ‘You will catch up with us later, won’t you?’   
‘We will, Emma,’ Catalina agrees. ‘We’ll get our work down first and come and find you later. Jane already has all our numbers, but it could be useful for you to have ours, too.’ I nod and get my phone out of the dresser and add everyone onto my contacts list.

Jane and I head into town, and the view takes my breath away. All of the buildings have timber decorations, and the white walls paired with them makes it look like we’re back in Tudor England. The only thing that gives it away that we are not is the tiled roofs. Each of the shop windows displays different products, and each of them has names that link to what they sell. ‘All of the businesses in town are local ones,’ Jane explains as we walk. ‘We prefer not to support the big cooperations unless we have to as the smaller businesses work much harder than them and deserve the credit.’ We continue walking down the street, and I admire the buildings as we pass. ‘Here we are,’ Jane finally says when we reach the town square.

The buildings still have timbered walls and tiled roofs, but the square also has a market that sells all sorts of goods. ‘We can check out the market once we got your uniform.’ I catch a glimpse of a wooden stage with steps leading up to it.   
‘What is that for?’ Jane takes my arm and leads me to one of the shops.   
‘It is a reminder of when we had the death penalty during the Hybrid rebellion. That scaffold was where your grandparents died.’   
‘Oh,’ I say. ‘Is that why you dragged me away?’ Jane nods, then plasters a smile on her face.   
‘Let’s get you sorted out for a school uniform.’ The shop we are standing outside of is a clothes shop. ‘This is the best place to buy whatever clothes you want, and they will happily embroider the school logo on clothes as well. Do you have a student pass yet?’   
‘No, not yet.’ Jane begins to look worried.   
‘We better get that sorted first. Come with me.’ Jane leads me away from the clothes store and towards another one.

The door is a dark wood to match with the timber, and when Jane opens the door, a bell above it tingles. A man looks up from his counter. ‘Hello, Miss Seymour.’ I follow Jane inside and look around. ‘What can I do for you?’   
‘This is my friend, Emma Smith-White. She needs a student pass so we can get her school uniform.’   
‘Well, you’ve come to the right place. Come on through. I’ll need to take a photograph for your student pass; then you can use that for anything you need.’   
‘Thank you.’ We go into the back room, which the man set up as a studio. ‘Do many people come here?’ I ask.   
‘Yes, they do. Everyone in town and at Hybrid Academy come here. Other than that, I don’t get a lot of demand. At least the students keep coming. I don’t only do photographs for student passes but all sorts of things.’   
‘I’ll definitely keep this place in mind,’ I promise. It feels nice in here, and I feel safe. Maybe I should consider photography as a hobby. He takes a photograph of me and has a student card prepared for me in ten minutes. ‘Thank you,’ I say. Jane pays for the card, and we head outside.

‘We can get your bank account set up now,’ she says. ‘Let’s go.’ We are about to head inside when my phone starts ringing. I check to see who it is, and it’s Mum.   
‘Do you mind if I take this first?’   
‘Of course, you can,’ Jane nods, and we move further away so I can talk to Mum.

‘Hi Mum, how is everything going?’   
‘Not great. I’m thinking of coming to Qetanish. It’s too hard at home now.’   
‘Why? What’s happened?’   
‘It’s Sarah. Since we got Luke the day before, she can’t talk about anything else. I suggested that she called you because of what happened, but I guess she hasn’t.’   
‘No. Is there anything else?’   
‘I think Luke hates me.’   
‘What gives you that id—’ I stop myself. Of course, Bane and Qetesh are enemies. ‘Right, of course, the two species are enemies. Well, it’s only been a few days—’  
‘No, but he’s trying to ruin my life!’   
‘Where are you now?’   
‘I’m in the cellar.’

That was the one room that Mum never let either of us in. Why was that? ‘Sarah kind of banished me down here because I apparently “kept on trying to distance her from Luke” when that isn’t what I’m doing.’ I can hear the sobs in Mum’s voice, and my heart goes out to her. I wish there is something I can do, but I’m not sure there is.   
‘Keep at it, at least for a couple more days. If things don’t change, try talking to Mummy again.’   
‘I will do,’ Mum says. ‘And here was me thinking that I would have to give you relationship advice first.’ I smirk. ‘But yes, I will keep at it for a while. If things don’t work, I’ll let the Qetesh know and figure out what to do from there.’   
‘That’s a good idea. Good luck, Mum.’   
‘Thank you, Emma. I love you.’   
‘I love you too. I think you need to be told that now more than ever.’   
‘Yeah. Anyway, bye.’   
‘Bye.’ I hang up and turn back to Jane.

‘Everything all right?’   
‘My parents’ relationship is on the rocks. It was like that before I left, and I hoped they would at least try to get along while I was gone. But now, with Luke there, it looks like he’s trying to kick Mum out.’   
‘I don’t want to presume anything, but from experience, all Bane instil in their archetypes hatred towards the Qetesh.’   
‘From experience?’ I ask. ‘Jane, I hope you never had to experience that!’   
‘My little brother was a Bane archetype. My mum and dad hoped that they could teach him to love others and that his new teachings would override his hatred. Whenever we were out, he kept trying to kill Qetesh. The government cracked down on them hard and banned them from ever adopting again. At least the death penalty isn’t in place, or they would have harsher punishment.’   
‘So, what happened to your little brother?’   
‘What happens to all Bane archetypes. The Qetesh devoured him. And that is what will happen to Luke if he ever steps foot on this planet.’ Jane opens the door to the bank and walks inside.

The bank is light and airy, thanks to the large windows that allow sunlight to stream in. The walls are a cream colour, and all of the desks are made of light-coloured wood. Six people are sitting at desks, sorting out clients. One of them is free. Jane takes my hand and leads me over to them. ‘Excuse me?’ The woman looks up. ‘Emma Smith-White wants to open a bank account here.’   
‘Of course,’ she says, and gestures to the two seats in front of her. We both sit down, and I am pleasantly surprised that the seats are soft.

We begin sorting out the paperwork, and it doesn’t take too long for them to set my bank account up. ‘Right, that should be everything you need,’ the woman says. ‘I hope you have a—hang on, are you Ruby White’s daughter?’ People are starting to look in our direction.   
‘Yes, I am.’ Please, don’t let a stranger fangirl to me about my mother. It’s bad enough when my friends do it.   
‘I see,’ she nods, then smiles. ‘Welcome to Qetanish.’ We walk out of the bank and head to the clothes shop.

The clothes shop is full of people. There are a group of girls in the corner, talking and laughing as they pull out dresses from the rack to see how they suit them. T-shirts are sitting on the counters, and the shop is full of many different and unique colours. ‘There is usually an assistant free to help someone,’ Jane says. ‘I’ll go and see if I can find someone.’ Jane leaves me standing in the middle of the shop while she tries to find someone.

I walk over to the t-shirts and spot a white one. I mostly like plain t-shirts as they helped me blend in a bit more with the crowd when I was on Earth. I don’t have to know, but I think it is a nice reminder to my past. Next, I turn to the trousers. I never want to wear a dress or skirt again, so trousers or shorts will be my best option. As I am looking at the trousers, I spot a dungarees section. I walk over and find a pair of black dungarees. It will cover almost all of my t-shirt, but it looks lovely. I will have to find more plain t-shirts and more dungarees, but I feel that this is the look I want to go with while I’m at Hybrid Academy.

‘Hey, Emma,’ Jane says, coming up behind me. ‘Oh, I see you already started picking out clothes. These dungarees will look cute on you! Shall we find some more?’ We go to find some more, and I see a white jumper and another pair of dungarees. As the weather will start turning colder soon, I would want an outfit that will help keep me warm. I also spot a couple of hoodies I like, one of them reads ‘Born to make history’. The other has the symbol of two women holding hands and the word ‘LGBT’ only the L is in pink while the rest of the letters are black. I pick up the first hoodie but not the second. While I might be a lesbian, I don’t want my friends to know just yet. Would they still like me if they know I’m a lesbian?

‘You’ll need more outfits than that,’ Catalina says. ‘I think I know something that might suit you.’   
‘Lina, when did you get here?’ Jane asks.   
‘A couple of minutes ago. Come on, Emma.’ Catalina leads me further into the store, and we start looking at blouses, waistcoats, trousers and long pirate-looking coats.   
‘These sort of clothes will make me look like a pirate!’ I grin. ‘I will certainly stand out at school.’  
‘That’s true,’ Catalina nods, and we pick up a couple of outfits. ‘You’ll still want more clothes, though.’ I sigh. I like the four outfits I already have, but Catalina is right. Besides, I only have one hoodie. I go back to the hoodies and find another two that I like. One of them is black and reads ‘I can’t even think straight’. Almost all of the words are in white except for the word ‘think’ which is in rainbow colours. There is another black hoodie, but it reads ‘Marriage is about love not gender’ and the word love is in rainbow colours. But these are not enough for outfits. I would only have four changes of clothes; nowhere near enough to get me through the week. I also locate a red and white striped t-shirt, and I also get some underwear.

Jane’s eyes are wide when Catalina and I return with armfuls of clothes. ‘You don’t have many t-shirts or blouses,’ Jane says.   
‘I can still use some of the blouses I already have,’ I explain. ‘I can always go to town when I need more clothes.’   
‘True,’ Jane nods. ‘Why don’t you go and try them on?’ I nod and go to the dressing rooms.

I try on most of the clothes. I already know I want the modern-day garments, but I still try them on. The pirate-themed clothes concern me a little, so it is them I want to try. I begin to dress in them, and I feel a power I haven’t felt before. These clothes make me feel like I can do anything, be anyone. It is the start of my new beginning. So what if my parents left me behind? I have new friends that care about me, people who like me for being me.

Sure, I’ve not told them everything about myself yet, but I know that time will come. I will get to know my friends better, then I will tell them.

I show each of my sets of clothes to Catalina and Jane, except for the three hoodies that relate to the LGBTQ+ community, and they agree that they suit me. I also try on the modern-day clothes and the hoodies, and the hoodies make me feel like me. I buy all the clothes I picked up and decide I will get more at a later point. I get a silver ‘HA’ sewn onto the pockets of my dungarees and near the collar of the coat. I keep the hoodies as they are.

When we leave, Catalina asks Jane if she can spend some time with me. Jane agrees to meet us back at Hybrid Academy and continues up the path towards the school. Catalina leads me into one of the stores, and I gasp in surprise. There are many LGBTQ+ flags on the walls, books lining the shelves, badges and even notebooks with the different flags on the covers. ‘Wow,’ I breathe.   
‘It is that,’ Catalina agrees. ‘I’m still blown away by the support here.’ She turns to me. ‘I noticed the hoodies you brought, and I thought you would want to come here.’   
‘Yeah, I never even knew this shop existed. When we came on the tour, it wasn’t pointed out.’   
‘It usually isn’t. People have to find it for themselves.’ Catalina pics up a pansexual flag and smiles. ‘I’ve not told my other friends yet, but I thought that you should know first.’   
‘Thanks, Catalina.’ I find a lesbian flag and pick it up. The bell above the shop door rings, and Kitty steps inside.

‘Hi, Kitty,’ I say. Kitty waves back and walks over to us.   
‘I never knew this place existed! How did it take me over a year to find it?’ She laughs. ‘Well, I found it now.’ She walks over to the cushions and picks up one that has a print of the transgender flag on it. ‘We should get cushions with our flags on them—if you feel comfortable about it.’   
‘You’re transgender?’ Catalina asks in surprise. Kitty nods.   
‘Anne had always supported me, mainly when I had surgery. The rest of my family distanced themselves from me.’   
‘So there are still problems here?’ I ask. Catalina nods.   
‘People are more open here than they are on Earth. Many are supportive of the LGBTQ+ community, but there are still a couple of haters around.’

‘Anne, you are meant to finish your work before coming into town!’ Jane says.   
‘But I want to check on my little cousin!’ Anne is soon with us, and she smiles when she sees what we are holding. ‘I like what you’re thinking!’ She picks up a cushion with the rainbow flag. ‘I’ll pick up one for Anna as well.’ We are about to pay when Anna walks in. ‘Hey Anna, I picked this up for you!’   
‘Thanks, Anne.’ Anna takes the cushion then sees that all of us except Jane are holding one. Jane then finds a pillow with a rainbow print that says ‘ally’.   
‘We should go to Pride this year,’ Jane says. ‘I’ve never been before because my parents started to become more conservative since the whole incident with my little brother. Then, I heard that my little cousin was transgender, and I decided to support her.’ Jane hugs Kitty. We spend some more time in the shop and pick up some other items before we leave.

When we arrive back at our dorm room, our arms are full of bags. We begin sorting everything out and placing everything where they belong. We put our cushions on our beds and Anne suggests that we do a photoshoot. We agree, and Anne starts taking pictures. Cathy turns up a few minutes later, and she takes a photograph of all six of us holding our pillows. We go through them later and agree that we need to frame the group photo.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I imagine that Emma and her roommates are part of the LGBTQ+ community, but Jane (for the time being) is an ally of the community.


	6. It's a new day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hybrid Academy is closing due to lack of teachers.

The next morning, I wake up to the sun shining brightly. I’m feeling more aware this morning, which is a good thing. I don’t want a repeat of yesterday morning.

Oh, I have to get the results back today. ‘Jane?’ I whisper. I don’t want to disturb anyone else as they could be sleeping.   
‘Yeah?’ She whispers back.   
‘Can you come with me when I get my results?’   
‘Sure. I’ll get ready.’ I see a figure, most likely Jane, slip out of bed and pick up some clothes before disappearing behind the partition to get dressed. I locate my navy uniform and do the same. By the time seven comes around, Jane and I are ready to go. 

When we get to Nurse Dawn’s office, she is waiting for us. ‘Thank you for coming, Emma.’ She nods to Jane, and we all sit down. ‘Well, Emma, I looked over your results, and they’re not good.’   
‘Oh,’ I say.   
‘You are suffering, so I would like you to see me each day for now. You can bring a friend with you, and they can confirm what you are doing.’  
‘All right,’ I agree, then my phone rings. So does Jane’s, and we both check our phones. Another of our teachers, our Hunger Management teacher, had to leave.

‘What will happen if too many teachers leave?’ Jane asks as we walk back to our dorm room.   
‘There is no point asking me; you’ve been here longer than I have.’   
‘I know, but this hasn’t happened yet.’   
‘I guess our learning will move online, or we would have substitute teachers.’ We open the door to our room, and an unfamiliar sight meets our eyes.

Anne is sitting on her bed, reading a book. Kitty keeps on glancing around the room, and she smiles when she sees us. Catalina jumps off her bed and pulls us into a hug. ‘We thought you both gone missing!’ She lets us go. ‘I was about to make breakfast.’   
‘No, I’ll do it,’ Jane says. She is about to start when our phones ring again. A list of more teachers who left the school is on there, and many of them are ones we have.

There is a knock on the door. Anne jumps up, leaving her book abandoned on the bed, and opens the door. Mr Coleman is standing in the doorway. ‘Ladies, I have some bad news,’ he says. ‘As we had to let go of so many teachers, we cannot run the school.’   
‘What?’ We all ask.   
‘While we find more teachers, you will all have to go back to your homes and continue learning online. We will give you another day to pack everything up and to buy games consoles so we can communicate.’ We nod, and Mr Coleman left.

‘This is all happening because of me, isn’t it?’ I ask. My friends sadly nod.   
‘But that doesn’t matter, because when we come back, we’ll know we’ll have teachers we can rely on.’   
‘I am meant to see Nurse Dawn every day. What am I meant to do about that?’   
‘You can still have meetings through your games console, so we better get that now.’   
‘Let’s go into town before we pack up,’ Anna suggests. ‘It will be the last time we can be together before we leave.’

I nod and look around the room. How long will it be until we return? It could take months for them to find new teachers, and if I’m back at home, I would already be at a new school. Hybrid Academy will be like a dream I had to wake up from. Here, people understand me. I have friends for the first time. How can I give that up? ‘We should go into town now, avoid as much of the rush as we can,’ Jane says. We all quietly agree and head out the door.

The town is quiet—a bit too quiet for my liking. Even the square is empty, the scaffold where my grandparents died towering over us. Catalina takes the lead, walking us past the platform and towards the other side of town. As we walk, we notice that many of the shops are either closing or shut. ‘Excuse me?’ Anne asks one of the shopkeepers. ‘Why are you closing?’   
‘It’s because Hybrid Academy is closing,’ he replies. ‘Most of our business comes from the school, and now it’s closing; the mayor said that the town must close. Without Hybrid Academy, we’ll lose most of our business.’ He hurries inside and locks the door behind him.

The rest of the walk to the electronics shop is silent. The town looks like it is full of ghosts today. Students aren’t out enjoying the sunshine, taking a walk, or talking to friends. When we get to the electronics shop, we all sigh with relief when we see the door standing open. We walk inside and begin looking around.

‘Hello, ladies,’ a store attendant says. ‘What can I do for you?’   
‘Hello,’ Anna says. ‘We are looking for games consoles.’ The store attendant nods and begins to lead us towards the right aisle.   
‘It’s a shame Hybrid Academy is closing,’ she says. ‘A lot of our equipment goes there, and it will be tough to find new customers. At least the mayor will give everyone some benefits while the school is closed. However, the town will never be the same again. Do you know what style you are looking for?’   
‘Any, as long as we can do our schoolwork on them,’ Kitty says. She nods and soon stops in the correct aisle.   
‘This make is a little outdated now, but some students still like it,’ she shows us an oval white games console that can fit in our hands. There is an oval blue screen in the centre with white trim around it and two blue lights either side of it. Below the screen are two tiny lights. ‘This make utilises holograms for entertainment purposes, but it can also help you study as it has access to many of the documents Qetanish has to offer. It also has a link back to Qetanish, so if you need help, we can give it. This games console is the exact make that was used at the beginning of the Hybrid Rebellions when they imprisoned Ruby White. She would have one that looks like it.’ That gets my attention. ‘It would also have contacts with other exiled Qetesh, but only those that Qetanish have approved of you contacting.’   
‘Would the games consoles be exact?’ I ask. She nods. ‘Then can I please have that?’   
‘Are you sure that you don’t want to look at the other models before deciding?’   
‘I’m sure,’ I say. I follow my other friends as they chose games consoles, and I notice that the store attendant is trying to make me change my mind. Well, there is no chance of that. I am sticking with the make I already chose.

We head back to Hybrid Academy after choosing our games consoles. When we arrive back at our dorm room, we begin packing. I remember to take my scrapbook, which is still empty. I’ll have to ask for a copy of the framed picture we have. I look at our table and smile at it. ‘We should all have a copy of that,’ Jane says when she realises what I’m looking at.   
‘I agree,’ Catalina says, and takes the photo out of its frame. ‘I’m going to photocopy it. Do you all want a copy?’   
‘Yes, please,’ we all say. Jane heads out with Catalina, and the rest of us continue packing.

‘Emma, why did you choose an older style games console?’ Anna asks. ‘You can have any make you want, why did you go for that one?’   
‘Because I wanted it. And besides, did you not hear what the store attendant said? Mum would have one exactly like this one. I want to feel a little closer to her.’   
‘Is that why you got it?’ Kitty asks, and I nod. Catalina and Jane return with the photographs, and I quickly open my scrapbook and glue it onto the first page. I label the page ‘with my friends, Catalina Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anna Cleves and Katheryn Howard’.

We all continue packing so we will be ready tomorrow. Kitty, Anne, and Jane are ready. ‘I have nowhere to go,’ Kitty realises.   
‘That’s not true,’ Catalina says. She’s about to say more when we hear someone knock at the door. Jane opens it to reveal Cathy.   
‘Cathy! What can we do for you?’   
‘I was actually wondering what I could do for you. Kitty, I heard that your family aren’t so kind to you now. If you- any of you- want anywhere to stay, my family will always welcome you.’   
‘Thanks, Cathy,’ Kitty says. ‘I’ll take you up on your offer.’   
‘Me too,’ Anne says. ‘What about you, Jane?’   
‘I don’t know,’ Jane admits.   
‘My family will also accept any of my friends, so you won’t be short of places to go,’ Catalina assures us. ‘We should unlock our games consoles and add each other to our contacts in case anything goes wrong. Not that it should, of course,’ Catalina quickly back peddles when she realises what she meant. ‘But I would feel better if I knew I did something for my friends.’   
‘My door is always open,’ Anna adds. ‘So, you all have three places to go if things get a little rough at home.’ We all express our gratitude.

‘You’ll want to unlock your games consoles one at a time,’ Cathy says. ‘The console would want to identify your voice so you can use it properly. If more than one person is doing it at the same time, it could muddle everything up, and you’ll have to start again.’   
‘Who wants to go first?’ Anna asks. No one seems willing to go first.   
‘I will,’ I say. Cathy sits beside me as I get out my games console. ‘That is the same games console that Ruby White has. Where did you get it?’   
‘At the electronics shop,’ I say. ‘They had one in stock.’ Cathy smiles.   
‘I had one of these when I was a little girl; you’ll soon get the hang of it.’ I unlock my games console for the first time.

‘Hello, new user,’ a male voice says. I jump in surprise, then Cathy gestures to the games console. ‘I am your new games console. Before we begin, please state your full name.’   
‘Emma Smith-White.’   
‘Hello, Emma. I am your games console. You can choose any name you like for me, either now, or at a later stage.’   
‘Can I choose at a later stage?’   
‘Certainly,’ he says. ‘Until you think of a name, you call me ‘games console’.’ Cathy begins showing me how to use it now my games console obeys me. I add Cathy’s contact. Then, Cathy starts helping the others, and we swap numbers at the end. We can now contact each other whenever necessary.

As I look through my contacts, I realise that Mum is on there, listed as Ruby White. It must be her. ‘You can contact Ruby through that console if you want,’ Cathy says. ‘It is the only type that allows it.’   
‘I see,’ I say. I can contact Mum with the power of my voice.   
‘Come on, Emma. You should do it.’ Jane says. ‘She is your mum, after all.’   
‘Wait—’ Cathy says. ‘You’re Ruby White’s daughter?!’   
‘Please, don’t start fangirling over me because of who my mum is. It gets a little irritating after a while.’   
‘Oh, I wasn’t going to fangirl over you. That would be a little weird. No, no, I was going to ask you questions about Ruby, if you don’t mind.’   
‘Er, okay. But if I think some of the questions are too personal, I won’t answer them.’   
‘I can agree with that. It won’t take long. What was Ruby like as a mother?’   
‘She was amazing, but always worrying over me. As I grew up on Earth, I had to hide who I was for thirteen years. It was a hard time, Cathy, and I think I’m about to go through that again.’ Cathy nods.   
‘I can understand how you feel,’ Kitty agrees. ‘I used to dress up in my older sister’s clothes when I was a boy. That and every moment after my surgery felt like I was me.’   
‘We might have suffered different problems, but we know what it’s like to hide,’ Anne says. We all nod when there is a knock at the door. It is Mr Coleman again.

‘Cathy, are you ready to go?’ Cathy nods and makes her way out. ‘Girls, if you are ready, you need to leave now.’ I pack my games console away and stand up. Kitty, Jane, and Anne also stand. Anna tidies away her last few belongings, and Catalina looks around the room. ‘We started looking into teachers, and we’ll try to have the school up and running as soon as possible.’   
‘Thank you, Mr Coleman,’ I say. Mr Coleman nods as we gather our belongings and head our way out of Ruby Hall.

All the hybrids are gathering in the courtyard, where the portals are located. There are six for each hybrid species, which makes it easier. I am the first one to step in. I close my eyes and think of home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't worry, this is not the end of the story.


	7. Chapter 7

Hi everyone. 

I found I have lost inspiration for this story fast. It was fun, to begin with, but it now doesn't feel like a story I want to tell. I will write another story with my OC, Emma Smith-White, but it will not be this one. 

Until I get any inspiration for this story, I will discontinue it. 

I hope you all have a good day.

CeriseHood5050


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